“I can’t possibly go to New York and leave you to deal with him. He’s going to ruin everything. It’s what he does. You should go do the interviews. You’re better at that stuff.”
“You’re the face of Sassy V, my dear. No one can sell the brand better than you. They’re not going to talk numbers or marketing strategy. They want shiny, happy, pretty. And that is you, honey.”
Sass got up from the bed with a sigh and started unloading the second trunk, laying outfits on the bare floor in the oversized room. Everything in Harm’s house seemed as deceptively simple as he was. Stark-white furnishings, an open-air design that seemed sleek and modern, yet intricate woodwork could be found in the details. Elaborate patterns in the inlaid teak floors, a carved headboard depicting a beautiful garden and a wardrobe so beautiful she hadn’t dared open it lest a lion appear.
“Sometimes I feel bad that I get all the fun and you wind up with most of the boring work.”
Holly smiled up at her friend, appreciating the recognition. “For the record, I’d rather poke myself in the eye with a crochet hook than design a string bikini. Enjoy the interviews. I can handle Harm. He’s done nothing but help us so far.”
Sass slapped her bare thigh, a mark immediately forming on the pale skin below her shorts. “Helped himself to one of our models! Holly, really, you don’t know who you’re dealing with. Janny wasn’t kidding about the crazy love cluster that ended in three models all out brawling on Shoal Beach in the middle of a photo shoot. You-know-who had her weave snatched straight off her head. The story wound up on those checkout-stand rags. Is that where you want to see Sassy V?”
“Honey, I’m telling you, I’ve got this.” She turned her attentions back to the outfits, reworking which should be in the sunset shoot tonight so they could be sent to New York with Sass. “And you-know-who will do anything for publicity. Remember the story where she threw her shoe at the paparazzi? That was all to get the shoe website exposure. We can’t believe everything we read, or the gossip we hear.”
“Janny isn’t a gossip. She wouldn’t bother telling us if she wasn’t concerned.”
Holly pulled in a deep breath of sea air and stared out the open door at the ocean lapping at the rocky shore. Much of Anguilla’s coastline was sandy beach, but the shoreline from Harm’s villa was a tangle of craggy rocks and sea vines. Beautiful and dangerous, much like the man himself.
There was something about Harm’s reaction to learning it was Janny who had exposed his exploits that had her wondering if there weren’t more to the relationship. She was glad he’d agreed to play along, but he had his own agenda in wanting to show the gossipmongers he was more than the ultimate tourist attraction.
“Sass, are you sure Janny doesn’t have some kind of grudge where the Prinsens are concerned? She really seemed to have a hate on them. She even hates Joe.”
Sass tilted her head to the side, red hair pouring over her freckled shoulder. “She’s wrong about Johannes being a womanizer. I don’t have some idea that he was a saint before we got together, but he’s not a user. Not like Harm.”
“But she could be wrong about Harm too. I’m not saying he’s a hero, just that he has helped us. The only reason we can afford the extra day of shooting is because he’s letting us use the bungalows for the crew and putting us up here at his house.”
Sass dismissed the notion with a wave of her hand. “He’s doing that for Johannes. He’s an ass, but he loves his brothers. Hell, he’s probably just doing it for easy access to the models. They are right next door this way.”
“I’ll be sure to booby trap the doors so I can hear him sneaking out at night.” Holly chuckled and reached into the bottom of the trunk for the crocheted skirts and dresses they hoped to have time to photograph. Their brand licensing agreement was for beachwear. But nothing kept them from developing clothing on their own, or expanding the deal to an exclusive lifestyle brand, for a price.
“Holly, this isn’t a joke. Harm is a heartbreaker of the first order. A lethal lothario.”
“Did you just say lethal lothario?” The giggle started in her belly, bubbling out as she tilted to the side and crashed into the trunk. “He’s like a comic book villain. Caribbean Casanova, the lethal lothario.”
Even Sass couldn’t resist the infectious laughter. “Faster than a bullet with fresh batteries, stronger than Anguilla rum punch.”
“Able to seduce bikini models with a single wink.” She gave her best wink and sneer. “How you doin’?”
Sass fell over, taking Holly with her. Laughter filled the room, surrounding them and easing the nerves the way it always did.
Three sharp knocks on the open door caught their attention and they scrambled up and tried to rein in their amusement. The Prinsen brothers stood in the doorway, Joe smiling as deep as Harm scowled. Saskia started laughing anew, which really didn’t help matters as Holly tried her best to fight the mirth. But really, they stood there all chiseled and shirtless, looking like happy Superman and angry Bizarro.
Having eight brothers might have taught her about men, but she also wound up with an obscene amount of comic book knowledge. She could hold back the giggles, but not the grin. Apparently, that was Harm’s blue kryptonite, because he turned on his heel and left without so much as a word.
Chapter Six
“Twenty minutes and I’ve lost the color.” Jason adjusted a giant light reflector and motioned for his assistant to do the same with the others.
“No problem.” Holly sounded calm, but her heart was racing faster than her feet as she made a beeline over the powdery sand towards the bungalow.
The models had better be ready, or she’d crop off their heads. Brutal, but on a schedule like this she’d decapitate those who got in her way. Just call her Henrietta the eighth.
“Slingshots in the sunset, you’re on,” she called as she made her way inside to the make-do makeup room and froze. The trio in barely there suits looked perfect, but Harm leaning against a wall marred the image. If Saskia had walked in on him leering, she might never make it to New York.
Holly cleared her throat. “Ladies?”
They turned one by one, the Barbie look-alike facing her last. It shouldn’t bother her that they flirted so openly with Harm, and yet it did. Not in a jealous way of course, but it was downright disrespectful. For all they knew she and Harm were a serious couple.
“Harmannus was just telling us about a great restaurant.” Barbie reached out and touched his biceps.
“He does know all the best spots, don’t you, baby?” She shot him a smile she hoped sent the cease-and-desist message loud and clear.
He had the nerve to wink. “Maybe we should take everyone out for rum punch to celebrate a great first day.”
Rat bastard. He might be gorgeous and sexy and used to having his own way, but she wasn’t about to let him rattle her. “We have to be on the boat to Rendezvous Bay at dawn. I think we’ll save our celebrating until after the shoot is wrapped.”
He shrugged, which must have reminded Barbie to remove her hand.
“We need to get these shots in before we lose the sunset.”
He targeted his dark gaze on her, his penetrating stare utterly erotic and more than a little unsettling. “Careful with this one, ladies. She cracks a mean whip.”
“Don’t you forget it.” Why did everything have to be innuendo with this guy? “Ladies, shall we?”
Holly followed the trio to the beach, wondering just how much time a bikini model had to spend in the gym to get her ass to perk up like that. She felt Harm’s hedonistic presence right behind her, surely studying the models with much less scrutiny.
Holly stopped and watched as the photographer posed the models and Saskia primped and tugged the material to cover the naughty bits. Really, a slingshot suit was nothing more than a thong attached to a scarf. It hid their muffin and berries and absolutely nothing else. No wonder Harm was tracking them like a bear fresh out of hibernation.
What was she supposed to do with such a determined predator? His devil-may-care attitude could seduce a nun. Irritation niggled her like an itch, knowing that no matter what she tried, he still had the ability to upend her plans.
“We agreed you wouldn’t try seducing the models.” She spoke to the sea, not having to look behind her to know he stood right there. Vitality pulsed from him, making even her logical mind think of sex.
Lethal lothario indeed.
“If I’d been trying, none of them would be wearing those costumes right now.” He stepped up to stand beside her, his biceps brushing her bare shoulder as he crossed his arms over his chest.
She didn’t doubt it. The ocean breeze caressed her skin, now tingling with the awareness of the near-naked man beside her. Only a pair of shorts covered his muscular frame, and those rode so low on his hips there was no doubt what kept them from falling.
Harm cleared his throat. “Your manners need some work.”
She faked a laugh. “As does your sense of decorum. Do you own a shirt?”
He turned slightly, angling himself towards her. “You can’t play the prude with me. I know better. Women are not born knowing how to kiss the way you do.”
She went ahead and rolled her eyes at that one. And at the way his praise flattered her. “We’ve barely kissed. Your infamous reputation is based on quantity, not quality. Maybe you should be more discerning. And you need to stay away from my models.”
He stepped to the side and blocked her view of the beach. “You know, I’ve had about enough of this. The world doesn’t revolve around you, sweetheart. You bring a dozen women to Anguilla and assume I have nothing better to do than chase tail. Sassy tells me I can’t sleep with them. You tell me I can’t touch them. Which I have no intention of doing because I don’t need this kind of drama. But if you think you can tell me I can’t enter a house that I own because your models happen to be in it, you’re not just on the bus to crazy town, you’re driving it.”
Oh, how she hated it when he had a point. “You expect me to just sit back and let you screw the models one by one until I have a massive catfight on my hands? I can’t afford the delays that would cause. That’s why I agreed to your little plan. But I’m not game for having everyone think I’m some victim to be pitied because my man can’t keep it in his pants.”
He held up a finger. “First, making us a couple was your idea. I’m just using it for our mutual benefit.” He held up another finger. “Second, I have no interest whatsoever in laying down any of your models.”
“Oh, please. You disappear all afternoon and then turn up in the bungalow the models are changing in. Yeah, your motives are real pure.”
“Jealous much, Holly?”
Oh my lands, this man was going to have her rolling her eyes so much they’d wind up on the sand. “I don’t care where you stick it, so long as it doesn’t interfere with my business.”
“I think you do. But we’ll talk about that at dinner.”
“Excuse me? I’m not going to dinner with you.”
“Yes, you are. That’s why I was looking for you. Your shoot will be wrapped for the night and then you’re mine.”
“I’ll never be
yours
.”
He had the nerve to wink. “We’ll see about that. But first we’re going to adjust your attitude.”
“My attitude will be downright cheery if you stay out of my business.”
“You don’t want me to do that, sweetheart.” He leaned closer, so near she had to breathe in the clean, musky scent of man he’d already managed to tattoo on her brain. “Don’t you want to know exactly where I am when the sun goes down? To make sure I’m not doing something to someone else that you want me to do to you?”
Her chest squeezed around her thundering heart, but Holly knew how to appear cool even if she was flaming with rage. Saskia was right. He was a control freak bent on turning everything into his personal puppet show. Too bad for him she’d be the one pulling the strings.
“Why, Harm, I think you have a little crush on me.” She tilted her head to the side and pasted on her fakest smile. When he double blinked and squared his broad shoulders, she grinned for real.
“Sweetheart, you can tell yourself whatever you want. But if you want people to think we’re a couple, your time is mine when there is no light to take your pictures.”
“So you can prove to Janny you can be a boyfriend and not just a hot vacation story? What’s the deal with you two? Is she an old flame you’re trying to woo back?”
He shuddered, his nose wrinkling in disgust. Okay, so she’d missed that mark.
“I don’t care what anyone thinks of me, but I won’t allow anyone to tread on my brother’s happiness.”
“Including yourself?”
He stood too close, the setting sun painting the sky in sharp orange and bright pink behind him. She had nowhere to look but his dark eyes. If she dropped her gaze she’d wind up studying the pattern of his sparse chest hair again, noting how the whorls defined his honed muscles even more. Curiosity to discover whether it felt silky or rough had her squeezing her fists until her nails bit into her palms.
Of all the men to be attracted to
. “You don’t think messing with the models and jeopardizing the shoot will hurt Joe?”
“Everything you’re worried about has only happened in your overactive imagination.” He lifted his chin and his beard emphasized his strong jaw.
“I didn’t imagine you flirting in the bungalow.” She took a step to the side and focused on the photo shoot, everyone there a flurry of activity trying to get the last shots in.